If you follow my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/theseekerfiles/ or my twitter https://twitter.com/TheSeekerFiles, you’ll know that I promised to tell you more about my road trip today to get our newest herd member.
Meet Hershey
Here at the Meadowlarks & Morninglories Farm, we are moving more into raising mini nubians. Nubian’s originated in England and although they are primarily a dairy breed, can also be used as meat goats. Now as anyone who has ever had the pleasure of owning/raising goats can tell you, goats can be quite stubborn and cantankerous. They have their sweet moments, don’t get me wrong, but when their mind is set on something, oftentimes their owners get taken along for a ride.
This is where mini nubians come into play. Over the past decade roughly, breeders have been working on breeding nubians smaller while still maintaining their standards as a dairy goat. This makes them ideal for people who love goats but don’t necessarily have the strength to deal with a full sized goat. Not to mention, they are adorable! Some of the babies are only about knee height.
Right now, we are working on building our herd and transitioning from full sized nubians to mini nubians. To this point, we’ve brought in two smaller bucks and several smaller does. This is where Hershey comes in.
Hershey is what is known as a wether. All that means is that he is a fixed male goat. Wethers primary use is for either meat or companionship. Since they are fixed, they can safely stay with does without the risk of breeding them. Also, since they are larger than the does, they can defend them better against threats. Hershey was chosen for his good personality and sweet disposition and should be a great addition to the herd.
However, it did take a bit to get him home to us. He was finally big enough to come home with us, so today we set forth to get him. It was a 2 1/2 hour drive get him from the farm where he was born. It was a pretty drive and my mom and I had a great time going down there through some of the prettiest countryside. However, the ride back home seemed a bit longer, as he’d never been separated from his herd before and sang the song of his people on and off searching for them. However, we made it home without any incidents, so I’m calling that a win.
We put him in with the bucks at this point (the does are in the pen next to them) just until the herd gets used to each other. Then we’ll separate off the youngest does that we don’t intend to breed this year and put him in a pen with them.
In addition to the goats, there was Monkey a.k.a. Munca. She climbed the kennel bars we had her in as a kitten, thus the name. She oversees the running of the farm and takes her job very seriously.
So a long road trip but totally worth it. He’s settling in nicely (it will take a couple of days for him to fully settle) and is going to make an excellent addition to our herd.
So what new animals have you added to your family or farm lately?
Happy Friday!
The Seeker Files 